Cook The Books [Hardcover]

I really liked "Cook the Books" which is part of the Gourmet Girl mystery series. Even if you haven't read earlier books in the series, "Cook the Books" would be a good place to start. In fact, I didn't care for the first book in this series, but the premise of this one (the main character is helping to research and edit a book about great restaurants in Boston when a chef and friend is murdered), sounded interesting.

I'm glad I gave this series another chance. Compared to the first book, Chloe's character seems to have matured and is much more likable in this book. She is still working on her masters in Social Work and I thought the parts about her clients and how that related to the overall storyline was interesting. The mystery of who killed the chef also kept my interest throughout the book.

Although parts of the book were predictable, I still enjoyed it. There was a nice balance between Chloe's work, interaction with friends, and romance along with the mystery. Overall, this was nice light reading and an enjoyable book.

Having finally made it to her second year of graduate school, you'd think that Boston's Chloe Carter would be over the moon and showering herself with praise, presents, and blissful desserts - after all, she is a food connoisseur with a healthy appetite. Unfortunately, you'd be wrong. Yes, she may have her education under control, but every other aspect of her life is in complete disarray.

As if it isn't bad enough that her beloved boyfriend Josh basically abandoned her by picking up and fleeing Boston's brutal weather to take up residence in sunny Hawaii working as the personal chef to a couple sitting pretty on a pile of money; Chloe has now found herself in the throes of financial trouble courtesy of the lavish gifts she finds herself incapable of bestowing upon her godson Patrick. Rather than cutback on her spending habits, however, Chloe decides to do the unthinkable and snag herself a part-time job - and she finds the absolute perfect one as the assistant to handsome Kyle Boucher, a cookbook writer putting together a recipe book featuring cooking secrets from some of Boston's most brilliant chefs.

Despite the fact that she is forced to deal with some of Josh's best buddies, Chloe is convinced that the position was tailor-made with her in mind; and believes that she can contribute a great deal to the project. That is, until she finds herself in a gruesome situation when she arrives at the apartment of Josh's loudmouth pal Digger, only to find his humble abode, and his body, burnt to a crisp.

Chloe knows Digger well enough to feel certain that he would never allow himself to fall victim to a grease fire. In her mind there's no question about it...Digger was murdered; and she's determined to uncover the killer. But with so many people harboring ill will towards the lovable ladies man, doing so may prove to be more challenging than anything Chloe has ever encountered before; not to mention dangerous. For if Chloe doesn't catch the killer soon, the killer may just catch her.

I have been cheering Chloe on since we were first introduced to one another via Steamed (A Gourmet Girl Mystery) in 2006. In the four installments prior to Cook the Books (Gourmet Girls Mysteries), mother-daughter duo Jessica Conant-Park and Susan Conant have painted the classy Chloe as a feisty firecracker; Cook the Books (Gourmet Girls Mysteries), however, greets us with a slightly different side of Chloe, highlighting her compassion towards her friends, in addition to a softer side of her personality courtesy of her recent heartbreak - all of which appears more prominent based upon the darker storyline.

Cook the Books (Gourmet Girls Mysteries) takes readers behind the scenes of the restaurant business, showcasing the spite, bitter feelings, and hostility that underlie the niceties which take place in the world of cooking; yet despite the animosity and anger found upon each page, Conant-Park and Conant put forth a story that is not only engrossing, but brimming with a cast of characters that you truly can't help but to love - and, at times, loathe. Filling and fabulous...what more could you possibly ask for?

Erika Sorocco
Café Fashionista

What a great book! I picked it up by chance and am thrilled to find out there are 4 more in the series. I am equally saddened finding out that this is the last one in this series. I loved how the book flowed, so much so that I almost couldn't put it down at the end of my lunch hour. With a full time job, kids, and an all around crazy life I couldn't wait until my lunch break to dive right back into Boston and Chole's life. You ladies did a great job and I can't wait to read the other 4 installments and get caught up.

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